The Perks of Being a Gryffindor
by CerenbusSnapeMalfoy
Summary: Draco Malfoy has been sorted into Gryffindor. It is up to Harry, Hermione, and Ron to help him discover that it's not so bad, whilst dealing with the endless shame of being the first Malfoy to ever be sorted into Gryffindor. Starts in first year. Rating may change as they get older.
1. Chapter 1

**The Perks of Being a Gryffindor**

 **Chapter 1**

Harry had scarcely met anyone quite like him - he was arrogant beyond anything he could quite comprehend, moreso even than his own horrible cousin - Dudley Dursley. Harry couldn't help but silently hope that the boy's deepest aspirations for life became crushed somehow, though, being the good person he was, he instantly berated himself for the cruel thoughts. Though, just seeing the superior look on Malfoy's face alone was enough to make Harry's insides boil.

"Malfoy, Draco," Professor McGonagall called in her usual stern tone, and Harry's eyes darted to the little menace that he couldn't get his mind off of.

"I bet you ten galleons he'll be put Slytherin," Ron said, leaning closer to Harry so as to not raise his voice above the silence.

Harry barely had time to ask why before the Sorting Hat shouted, sounding rather puzzled, "Gryffindor?!"

A silence like no other stretched over the Great Hall, during which Ron quietly cursed, now owing Harry ten galleons, and the look on Malfoy's face made Harry think that when he'd blinked someone had stepped onto the platform and slapped him.

"Please take your seat, mister Malfoy, you're holding up the line," said McGonagal softly, a certain shock in her eyes as she lifted the Sorting Hat off of Draco's small, blonde head.

Draco stood, unbalanced, and tripped over his own feet twice in his attempts to shuffle his way over to the Gryffindor table, shocked into silence. Unlike the other freshly sorted students, who received thunderous applause from their new houses, Malfoy only got a few, stray, unenthusiastic claps as he stiffly seated himself, far removed from the other Gryffindor students.

"Granger, Hermione," McGonagall said, her voice sounding rather loud and shrill in the silence of the large room.

Hermione shifted nervously, giving herself encouragement out loud as she carefully climbed onto the stool Malfoy had previously been sitting at. She was promptly sorted into Gryffindor as well, and, being the kind little girl she was, seated herself closely to Malfoy who was staring forlornly at the tabletop. Instantly, his face screwed up bitterly and he shifted away from her so drastically that he bumped into one of the Weasley twins, who pushed him quickly back towards her.

"I'm Hermione Granger," Hermione introduced herself, thrusting her hand forward. "You don't look too pleased about your sorting. What were you hoping for?"

Malfoy ignored her hand, his eyes shifting to Harry who had just been sorted into Gryffindor as well, to a great deal of cheering, and was lowering himself into the seat across from them, staring at him with a straight face.

"Draco Malfoy," Draco began, through his teeth. "And I'd been hoping-" his voice cracked horribly and he twisted his pale hands together, dropping his gaze. "Slytherin," he whispered. "I should have been sorted into Slytherin. Oh my father's going to kill me, how did I get myself sorted into Gryffindor… Ravenclaw, I can see Ravenclaw, but _Gryffindor?"_ he lamented, burying his head in his arms, ignoring the looks he received.

Ron came up behind Harry, cautiously sitting across from Malfoy, nodding in thanks for the congratulations and applause he got from the other Gryffindors, most of which were now paying attention to the sorting once again, save for Hermione, Ron and Harry, who merely stared at the should-be Slytherin in their midst, unsure what to do about him.

"I'm sure your father will be proud of you no matter what," Hermione said, having no clue who his father was as of yet, and no idea how devastated Draco was at the thought of the disapproval his father would show for this…

"My whole bloody family, except for me!" Malfoy wailed, his voice muffled by his arms, and his fingers steadily undoing the spell which had slicked his hair back against his scalp. "My father will murder me for this! I'm not Gryffindor material, Slytherin's where I should be-"

"The Sorting Hat thought otherwise, or else you wouldn't be here, now would you?" Hermione said smartly, still patting his back encouragingly, which had become astoundingly irksome to him. "And I doubt your father will kill you over something so silly-"

This comment raised quite a few eyebrows and turned quite a few heads. "Houses are the basis of the school!" One of the twins, Harry wasn't sure which, said.

"You're sorted into them based on what you've got-"

"-you heard the Sorting Hat!"

"-where dwell the brave at heart-"

"-which is Gryffindor-"

"-use any means to achieve their ends-"

"-which is Slytherin-"

By now, Hermione was scowling, waving her hands for them to stop. "All right, _all right!_ I agree, the houses are important - but _not_ being sorted into the house you wanted isn't going to ruin your life-"

"You don't know my family," Malfoy argued, eyes wide and staring at nothing, still pulling fretfully at his hair which by now hung in front of his eyes in glued-together clumps. "My family's been sorted into Slytherin for generations! I'm the first one _not_ to be in Slytherin! I'm a disappointment to the family-"

"No, you're not. You're just special. Think about it, Draco. You're the _first in your family_ to do something none of them could have done! Why would you _want_ to be exactly like hundreds of generations before you? You just want to be a copy of them?"

Hermione's words did nothing to cheer him up, in fact, he seemed to becoming more and more depressed by the moment, though no longer bothered to push Hermione's comforting hands away.

Ron cast Harry a look that clearly stated, 'gag me', turning to listen to what Dumbledore had to say, and then joyfully to the food as it appeared before them in great, heaping mounds.

Draco did not touch anything, as he felt ill to his stomach, and had Hermione not anchored herself to his arm, he would have left early to sulk somewhere. His friends, Crabbe and Goyle, looked lost on the other side of the room, and continuously cast him worried glances, though he never looked up from his empty plate.

When everyone else had eaten as much as they could, the remains of the food faded from the plates, leaving them sparkling clean as before. As the prefects were all leading the new students to their dorms, it appeared as though the only person showing any sympathy towards Malfoy was Hermione, who he had as of yet to bark at. He was far too lost in his own thoughts, and among the reasons he hadn't cast her aside yet was because he remained unaware of her blood status. Hermione held high hopes that by the time he learnt of it, he would be too desperate for company to brush her off.

Harry and Ron had been avoiding Hermione since having labeled her as mental, and Ron had been casting Malfoy glares all through dinner. When they reached the common rooms and were shown their dorms, Hermione at last had to part from him, and he did not answer her when she asked if he would study with her later. Instead, he merely numbly followed the other boys up to their dorm, feeling ill to his stomach at all the red and gold. Six four-posters hung with deep, red velvet curtains, and every inch of the rest of the room was decorated in the same bloody colours. Their trunks had already been brought up. Too tired to talk much, and Malfoy far too dejected, the boys pulled on their pajamas and fell into their beds.

"This is the worst night of my life," Malfoy said only just loud enough for Harry and Ron to hear him over their conversation about the feast, though it was clear his words were not directed towards either of them. Whimpering, he crawled under the covers and hid his face, fingering the fine green nightclothes his mother had gotten for him just for Hogwarts. They were the only green thing in the room, though, other than Harry's eyes. And he felt, not for the first time, sorely out of place.

Whilst Harry was dreaming of talking turbans, laughing professors and awful green flashes, Malfoy lay wide-awake, dreading the letter he would more-than-likely receive early in the year, after his family learned of his placement in Gryffindor. The thought of being disowned constantly shoved its way into his terror-filled mind, and not a wink of sleep was to be had that night.

 **AN: So I got inspiration for this story on Facebook, there was a post (I think it originated on tumb1r) about what would happen if Draco had been sorted into Gryffindor instead of Slytherin. So this is just the first chapter. You guys want more? Let me know how you think Draco would behave/how his family would react/how the trio will react to his presence. Remember the three of them aren't close friends yet, they disliked Hermione until the day they saved her from the Troll, and she has yet to experience Draco at his worst, so I figured she would naturally try to befriend him first.**

 **AS ALWAYS IF YOU WOULD LIKE TO READ MORE ABOUT THE STORY/CHARACTERS VISIT THE MIGHTY SLYTHERINS WIKI (Link on my profile)**


	2. Chapter 2

Nauseating shades of red and gold met Draco's tired eyes the next morning when he woke. He didn't think he'd slept more than a half hour at most. After hours and hours of stressing over what his family would say, he had begun to nod off, but it felt as though no sooner than his eyes had closed, the room filled with the sound of students awaking and prepping for their first day of school.

Draco's stomach churned as he shakily combed out his hair after his morning shower, pointedly avoiding putting on the red tie and his new wizarding robes, emblazoned with the dreaded Gryffindor symbol, though eventually he had skived to the point where the annoying red-headed prefect was urging him to 'keep up, the other students are all waiting for you.'

Draco's hands shook terribly as he attempted to do up his tie, but it was useless. He was far too jittery, and gave up after his fifth attempt. Rolling his eyes, the prefect who Draco figured was another blasted Weasley stepped into the room and physically turned Draco to face him, doing up his tie with forced patience.

"Now go on, you don't want to be late for your first class," he shoved Draco's neatly folded new robes into his hands as he was pushing him out the door to join the other first-years waiting in the common room to be led to their first class.

"Alright, first years, this way, keep up please."

Draco nearly jumped out of his skin when he felt an arm coil around his, and turned his head sharply to stare at Hermione Granger, who had plastered herself to his side the instant she had seen him.

"Good morning, Draco, sleep well?" She asked loftily, and the two stepped through the portrait hole together, arm-in-arm.

Draco felt vaguely disoriented, allowing her to lead him as though on a leash. "No," he said emptily, not really watching where he was going, but Hermione steered him along.

She pursed her lips. "You're still upset about being put into Gryffindor, aren't you? You should get used to the idea, or it'll bug you forever, and you'll never get good marks. You don't want that." She spoke as if she were an expert.

Draco merely grunted in response, his ears suddenly tuning in to the whispers all around them as they marched down the halls towards their first class.

"There, look."

"Where?"  
"Next to the tall kid with the red hair."

"Wearing the glasses?"  
"Did you see his face?"

"Did you see his scar?"  
Whispers had followed Harry from the moment he left his dormitory. People lining up outside classrooms stood on tiptoe to get a look at him, or doubled back to pass him in the corridors again, staring. Harry wished they wouldn't because he was trying to concentrate on finding his way to classes, and Ron, Hermione, and Draco all seemed a bit envious of the attention.

Hermione, though, seemed only jealous because she couldn't get Harry and Ron to like her. Every time she steered Draco closer, opened her mouth to say something, Ron would duck his head and grab Harry's elbow, pulling ahead of them and whispering loudly "it's _her_ again!"

Draco by this time had noticed, and for the time being was able to rest his weary mind by asking Hermione about her problems instead of constantly dwelling on his own.

"Why are they avoiding you?" He even managed to sound interested.

"They're upset because I'm smarter than they are," she said glumly, tightening her hold on his arm as they trudged listlessly down the halls.

Draco laughed at that, feeling more light-hearted than he had a moment ago. "Being intelligent really is a problem, isn't it? Have to put up with all the lower forms of life."

Hermione wrinkled her nose at that. "Don't call them lower forms, it makes you sound snobbish. They're just not as informed, they're jealous."

Draco scoffed. "They've got scarcely a single braincell to split between them, they've got fewer IQ points than galleons in the Weasley bank." He snickered at his own joke, but flinched when Hermione smacked him smartly across the back of the head. "Ouch! What was that for?"

"For talking rubbish. Just because they're being rude doesn't mean you should be. Be the better person, turn the other cheek."

"I don't see you turning the other cheek! You jump at every chance to get closer to them, following them around like a lost puppy-"

"I resent that!" Hermione loosened her grip on his arm, glowering up at him.

Draco scowled, pulling his arm loose. "Honestly Granger, I haven't the time for your silly prattle, I've got far too much to worry about on my own."

"You could at least be grateful I've been getting your mind off of it! Without something else to think about, you're going to stew on it until it drives you mad." Hermione wrapped her arm around his once again, and looked devastated when he pulled his arm free once more.

"Leave me alone, I just want to be alone-"

"No." she said stubbornly, wrapping her hand firmly over his. "You're upset, and I've decided you're my friend, so I'm not going to leave you alone until you feel better."

Draco could have laughed at the determination he could plainly see in her eyes, but it only frustrated him. "I just want to be left alone…" he said in a whining tone, shoulders drooping and feet dragging.

"Well I'm not going to let you do something so unhealthy as push away a comforting hand. So just… deal with it." She nodded firmly, in a way that suggested finality, and Draco had no choice but to sit down beside her in their next class room, which was Potions in the dungeons.

Feeling drained, but oddly content, Draco slowly pulled out his books and things, casting his eyes to the other side of the room where Crabbe and Goyle were watching him, helpless expressions on their dumb faces. Draco rolled his eyes at them, turning back to his things, though he couldn't help but feel jealousy lodge itself deeply into the pit of his stomach. They were Slytherins, like he was meant to be. He could feel the ephemeral good mood Hermione had put him in deteriorating rapidly.

"You're thinking about it again, aren't you?" Hermione hissed, nudging Draco's shoulder after spotting his woebegone expression. "Stop it, you're going to make yourself ill."

Draco didn't have time to retort before the door burst open and in swept professor Severus Snape, who Draco knew as 'Uncle Sev'.

Snape, like the other professors, started class by taking the toll call, and like the others, he paused at Harry's name.

"Ah, yes," he said softly, "Harry Potter. Our new - _celebrity."_

Draco's mood was instantly heightened as he watched his godfather pick on Harry, who he still resented for turning down his offer of friendship. Hermione straightened a little, watching the conversation with interest, and somewhere behind them, Crabbe and Goyle snickered behind their hands.

Snape finished calling the names and looked up at the class. His eyes were black like Hagrid's, but they had none of Hagrid's warmth. They were cold and empty and made you think of dark tunnels. While Draco was used to it, the cold look on Snape's face sent chills down the spines of nearly everyone else in the room.

For the rest of the lesson, Draco delighted in watching Snape bully Harry mercilessly, but couldn't understand why Snape never let Hermione answer his questions, as she clearly wanted to, desperately waving her hand, and even standing.

"Sir, she knows," Draco began, raising his hand and nodding to Hermione, but his voice faltered and his hand quickly dropped when he felt the eyes of the Potions Master flick towards him.

"Sit down," Snape snapped at Hermione, ignoring Draco. "For your information, Potter, asphodel and wormwood make a sleeping potion so powerful it is known as the Draught of Living Death. A bezoar is a stone taken from the stomach of a goat and it will save you from most poisons. As for monkshood and wolfsbane, they are the same plant, which also goes by the name of aconite. Well? Why aren't you all copying this down?"

There was a sudden rummaging for quills and parchment, and Hermione was the only one who had already been taking notes. Draco began furiously scribbling these things down, but had to lean towards Hermione and ask her what the alternate name of the plant was, as he'd already forgotten. Delighted to help, Hermione scanned over his notes, and quickly scribbled in a few more for him, whispering rapidly.

Over the noise, Snape said, "And a point will be taken from Gryffindor House for your cheek, Potter."

Every Gryffindor in the room looked devastated, even Draco, who cast Harry a resentful glare for losing them a point in the first Potions class of the year.

This didn't improve for the Gryffindors as the Potions lesson continued. Snape put them all into pairs and set them to mixing up a simple potion to cure boils. He swept around in his long black cloak, watching them weigh dried nettles and crush snake fangs, criticizing almost everyone except Draco, who under any other circumstance would enjoy the favouritism. Now, he resented the glares he was receiving; it made him feel like a bug under a microscope.

After class, Draco and Hermione trudged off to the library together to work on the mounds of Homework they'd gotten from their classes, ignoring Ron and Harry who had gone off to meet Hagrid for tea.

"Bloody Potter lost us two points in the first week," Draco said grumpily, dumping his armload of books onto an empty table he and Hermione had chosen. This received a sharp hiss from Madam Pince, the Librarian, who despised all manner of abrupt noises.

"Professor Snape was being cruel. Of course he could have known the answers to Professor Snape's questions if he'd done a bit of reading first, but still, Harry hardly did anything wrong." Hermione kept her voice low, and placed her books neatly on the table, sliding into the seat directly across from her dejected companion.

"Please," Draco pleaded, dropping his head to the desk, "don't cover for him! It's all I can handle thinking of how ruddy popular he already is, having done nothing of consequence."

"Well, he _did_ do something of consequence-" Hermione began, but she stopped at the look Draco gave her. "Of… of course it was a long time ago. People should hold him up to the same standards they do for everyone else. Just because he was lucky as a baby doesn't mean he's particularly talented now. He'll need to prove himself like everyone else, because calling him special for something he did by accident when he was a baby is nothing short of hero worship."

Her words lifted Draco's spirits tremendously, and the two of them worked together on their homework for the rest of the evening, returning to the common room after dinner, and parting ways on a far friendlier note than the night before. Draco pointedly ignored Harry and Ron when he got into bed that night. As the hours went by, his good mood faded, and he was once again plunged into unwanted thoughts about his family and what they would say when they learned that he was not as Slytherin as they had expected him to be.

 **AN: Sorry it's been so long. My muse ran away. Let me know what you think, and if you'd like me to continue. Please review !**


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